Most of the contacts officers and commanders have with psychologists deal with issues of mental health, such as fitness for duty and preemployment. The police psychologists themselves are generally clinical or counseling psychologists, with training in the relevant areas.

There is, however, another area of law enforcement psychology: The emerging field of forensic cognitive science. The practitioners are generally researchers rather than clinical psychologists, and they deal with issues directly pertinent to officer success, safety, and survival. The processes of thinking and memory in officers, witnesses, and perpetrators are the focus of this field. In view of the enhanced operational tempo of modern law enforcement, the information provided by this scientific approach is essential to commanders at all levels.